Travis and Lacee

Grand Canyon

2026-08-30T22:20:37.176-06:00

I can't believe I forgot to document our trip to the Grand Canyon over Spring Break! How embarrassing. It started one night over dinner- we were looking at the US map and started asking each kid where they'd like to visit. Jaxon said the Grand Canyon, and we thought, "Huh, that would be easy!"

Unfortunately, our trip got off to a little rocky start...

We were at a hotel in Brian Head, ready to hit the pool downstairs, when Talmage started running down the hall, looked back for a second, and then crashed full force into the corner of a fire extinguisher box on the wall. Honestly, he probably should have gotten stitches. But as we were up in the mountains, and hour away from a hospital, Travis ran to the local market (with jacked up prices) to buy gauze, neosporin, and medical tape. The hotel only had bandaids and antibacterial wipes.

After cutting away some hair and putting an insane amount of pressure on his head for an hour, it stopped bleeding enough to bandage it up. He was able to get his feet wet, at least, later on!

We missed our usual general conference breakfast with Mamie and Papa, but enjoyed rolls in our hotel room the next morning!

The kids were so excited to cross into another state they've never been before.

The next day, we got up early-ish to get to the Grand Canyon. I don't know what they enjoyed more, seeing the Grand Canyon or watching early morning Scooby-Doo from their beds.

On the way home, we stopped in Kanab to snap some pictures for my brother's LDS architecture website.

And of course, we stopped by my old stomping grounds in Panguitch before heading to the cabin.

It was a quick, but beautiful trip.

Taking a Break

2026-08-11T08:43:27.269-06:00

Ah, vacation. Shortly after Travis was released, we went to the cabin for the week and spent some quality time together without any unexpected calling- related phone calls. Trust me, he used to get an unbelievable number of calls and texts throughout the day, EVERY day...

The kids surprised us one morning and made waffles! They secretly packed everything needed for it!

We had fun checking out local museums...

The city park and library are always a favorite...

But most of all, we loved the beach!

It's so nice to get away!

An Ode to Barrio 7

2026-08-11T08:17:10.207-06:00

Well, after 5 years, 4 months, and about 20 days, Obispo Anderson was officially released! A few weeks prior, we had a big party with his couselors, executive secretary, and clerks to celebrate. We love these people so much!

(Hno. I. Lopez 2c, Travis, Hno. R. Lopez, 1c, Hno. Badillo clerk, Hno. Ensaldo ex.sec, Hno. Cruz EQP, and Hno. Stevenson YM advisor)

Travis liked having two counselors with the same last name. He would say, "if you need anything, ask Hno Lopez!" Ha, ha.

Travis home on a Sunday afternoon!

It has been such a wonderful, growing experience serving in our ward. It's been 15 years! I told our ward that sometimes I feel like Ammon in the Book of Mormon, in that no one seems to understand why we chose to serve amongst these people, but here we have witnessed such great faith, even more than amongst the Nephites. Many of the members endure such great afflictions, yet press forward in their faith in Christ.

Another fun party with our friends

There was one time where a family from a neighboring English ward went through something tragic. Travis talked to their bishop and he said their RS president was having a hard time finding more people to take dinner to this family, that they had filled up 2 weeks but were hoping for more. Travis asked our own RS president if there was anything we could do to help, and she responded with something like, "Bishop, there's not a member of our ward who does not know what it is to suffer." We filled 3 months of dinner slots for this family no one knew, and many couldn't even speak the same language.

Early morning temple trip before school

Another time, a primary teacher was suddenly arrested by ICE and spent months in a detention center. Travis submitted a character reference letter to the judge, and this brother was finally released. The next Sunday was testimony meeting and this hermano got up and bore such a strong testimony of the gospel, and how it kept him strong during his time in the detention center. He said he spent his time preaching the gospel to others who were also there. He said his patriarchal blessing said he would one day serve a mission, but always wondered how as he was already married and it never seemed feasible, but now he feels like that was his mission.

The young men have enjoyed many campouts with Travis as bishop

When I was Primary president, my first counselor and I were pregnant at the same time with these two. They ended up being one day apart! They moved a few years ago, but at a recent reunion they found each other so quickly and acted like they had always been the best of friends!

Talmage and Moroni are the best of friends

Violet's first year at girls camp!

We've had so many spiritual experiences like this where I feel like our family could not get anywhere else. I hope my kids always remember them.

Talmage Turns 5!

2026-07-15T08:44:29.653-06:00

Guess who just turned 5?

We love our Tal Tal. He's a ball of fun and is up for any crazy antics with his siblings or friends. He's also very excited for kindergarten!

Travis took him on his birthday outing to the aquarium. He loved it!

Violet Turns 12!

2026-07-15T08:36:36.241-06:00

It seems like she's been 12 all year, to be honest, but now it's official!

My phone was inconveniently dead, but Travis got a couple pics. :)

Violet is always up for adventure and scheming something or other. For her birthday activity she went camping.

She is a great little mother and loves to be around little kids. We love you, Violet!

Summer is Here!

2026-06-20T22:19:50.519-06:00

The youth love serving at the food and care coalition.

Ivy had a little mishap on the ice one morning. She fell and got a concussion and it's customary to call an ambulance when that happens. She rested very well the rest of the day.

Kids who were told not to get too close to the pond got too close to the pond. First Ginger lost her sandals in the deep mud and Violet lost hers while trying to help Ginger retrieve them. Travis finally helped us find them DEEP in the mud.

It was all at the Ward picnic. Always a fun tradition.

And then we've just been embracing the every day.

Getting lots of sun at a splash pad in Lehi while Violet is at her ASL class nearby.

Summer means cousin days at Mamie's!

Sometimes I take kids to work with me and they like to have fun there.

Dance Festival 2026

2026-06-20T21:52:45.983-06:00

Ivy was first of the 3 girls to perform. Such a cute Chinese Pony dance to commemorate year of the horse.

Ginger's grade did their traditional Philippino dance and were dodging the sticks pretty amazingly!

And Violet had her traditional Maypole dance.

She's the one in pink, ha ha.

And another chance for pictures with teachers and friends.

School Farewells

2026-06-20T21:37:24.949-06:00

It's the end of another era. No more preschoolers!

Talmage made some great friends in his class. His best friend Moroni from his primary class was in the same class!

Sigh...we've had some end of school year get togethers where we could say some final goodbyes before we move. We invited all the girls' school friends for pizza at the park.

And of course, all the school events to close out the year. Ginger played the part of Snow White in their Chinese class play.

It even had some wicked choreography.

Violet had her 6th grade graduation. She felt pretty bittersweet about it.

I'm so grateful they all found such great friends here. I know more wonderful friends await them at their new schools.

Let's go see the house!

2026-06-20T21:17:16.991-06:00

We love our frequent trips to the lot- or, I guess now we can say house.

What Winter?

2026-05-26T23:43:14.691-06:00

We essentially skipped winter. This was the biggest snowman we could make. So sad.

But we still filled our time with lots of fun.

Making chocolate covered strawberries at Mamie's (such a fun February tradition!).

And we had lots of school distractions. Violet went to district, and then region.

Jaxon has really enjoyed being in orchestra.

We've also been to band concerts this year!

Travis still hikes with ward friends every couple months. This time he took Violet and Ginger.

And of course, we can't forget our favorite tradition this time of year-

Chinese New Year! The kids always have a big presentation for parents with Chinese songs and dances they've learned. A big thanks to Mamie and Papa who subbed for me as I unfortunately had to work that morning!

In the evening, we have a fun tradition of decorating the kitchen for the Chinese New Year, eating (probably Americanized) Chinese food, and only speaking Chinese at the table. And it's always a treat to have Zyanya over. We could always use another Chinese speaker. :)

I'm always impressed how much their Chinese progresses each year. So grateful we can take advantage of the DLI programs here.

One on One Time

2026-05-26T22:43:34.176-06:00

I have loved having these last couple of years with Talmage at home. Preschool every afternoon has also been good for him this year. He's learned lots of English and has made good friends. But it's also been a good way to gently help me adjust to having more time solo at home.

But we had lots of fun mornings feeding the ducks...

Our weekly trip to BYU Bookstore for fun on the slide and watching some past games on the big screen while enjoying a doughnut and chocolate milk.

We also love going to the BYU Paleontology museum...

And of course the Bean Museum. In fact, we've looooved living so close to BYU, especially while kids were little. There's always something fun to do.

Feeding the birds at Sam's Club.

It's a bittersweet feeling for sure that these days with little ones at home during the day is coming to a close. But I'm excited for their next steps in life. And it'll be a little nice to have some time to myself again.

Christmas (cough, cough!*) 2025

2026-04-14T21:43:00.001-06:00

We started off Christmas break with a night out to eat at Golden Corral. The kids loved it! They'd never seen so many options for food and desserts before! We might make this a tradition.

And of course, we decorated Christmas cookies!

And then things slowly started going downhill. On Christmas Eve, Violet woke up feeling sick. Travis stayed home with her that night while the rest of us had a fun night at Mamie and Papa's.

On Christmas morning, Jaxon developed a cough that got progressively worse as the morning went on. We had to stop asking him to give hugs, or talk as it just made him cough even more.

Violet was still sick on the couch and didn't feel like opening presents. Eventually she and Jaxon went to bed. The whole situation distracted us from taking lots of pictures. We were trying to get through as many presents as we could.

For the next WEEK, it felt like we only had 3 kids. Ginger, Ivy, and Talmage has lots of fun with their presents.

At the end of the break, Violet and Jaxon started turning a corner, and Violet felt like she could finally open her presents we had saved for her.

We even had an extra day to do something fun, so we went to BYU.

It was a crazy fun, crazy sick, crazy crazy Christmas.

Holiday Prep

2026-04-14T21:21:00.004-06:00

We got tickets for Luz de las Naciones, and loved all the performances! We saw a bunch of friends there, too!

Ivy lost her first tooth! It's funny because dhe actually lost the other front tooth soon after, so it was just like the song!

Thanksgiving at the Andersons...Ivy wanted to wear her turkey hat she made at school.

This is not holiday prep, but it's just typical behavior around here. Marching around with underwear on the head.

We had a night out with friends and saw Nate Bargetze in Salt Lake. It's always fun to catch up with friends!

We also took the kids to their first movie, at the movie theater! I get a free ticket everytime I work a book sale shift at the library, so it took several shifts to cover us, but it was worth it! We saw Zootopia 2.

The youth always love volunteering at the food pantry. We love our ward so much!

We had a Noche en Belen before Christmas. Our ward truly outdid themselves!

I wish I would have gotten a picture of this cardboard scenery in the dark that night. It was lit up beautifully!

We were at little late to the event because we had Violet and Ginger's Christmas Show!

Then we made it to the church in time to join in the fun. I wish I would've gotten more photos of that night. We just enjoyed ourselves too much. :)

We're Building a House!

2026-01-04T22:36:00.001-07:00

We were originally just planning on moving to a bigger house. But when Travis was called as bishop, we suddenly had more time on our hands and our plans changed. We're very excited.

Halloween 2025

2026-01-04T22:22:00.001-07:00

Ah, Halloween. Good times. Came across this fun, throwback picture.

Jaxon was a robber, Violet a ninja, Ginger a witch, Ivy a mummy, and Talmage a vampire.

We love trick or treating with cousins. Such a fun tradition.

Happy Halloween!

Back in the Swing of Things

2026-01-04T22:12:00.004-07:00

Violet decided to try the trombone this year. She's had a lot of fun with it!

Still taking trips to the cabin. This time we took Zyanya, and the girls had a great time.

I love seeing Jaxon spend time with Talmage. He doesn't mind playing old school Little People. Excuse the mess, our house is very much lived in.

Travis still takes hikes with friends in the ward. I'm not a huge fan of hiking, but I fully support him going. ;)

And here the youth are at the food and care coalition, in charge of making breakfast for hundreds of people and cleaning up after everything. They do this every few months- they love it.

Talmage likes creating his own art projects on a whim.

One of the kid's experiences last Christmas was going to Nickelcade. The kids loved it!!

Goofing off with cousins at Mamie's...

So, one day I come home and Ivy and Talmage tell me about how they had been on a walk around the block, and on the walk they saw a dead bird. They felt so sorry and thought it should have a proper memorial service. Me: "Oh! How nice. Now, WHERE.IS.THE.BIRD?" (on their chest of drawers, of course). After a good hand washing, he was given a short service outside our outdoor garbage can.

Life is never dull around here.

Jaxon Turns 14!

2025-11-30T20:08:43.082-07:00

Jaxon turned 14! He is growing up before our eyes. He's also turning out to be a quite capable, reliable, and responsible teenager, with some silliness on the side.

He got a fanny back from Ivy last Christmas, and oh my goodness, he was inseparable from it. Every day at school and church (I make him take it off to pass the sacrament). But it finally broke over the summer from overuse so his sisters got him another one! He calls it "Bolsi", from Pixar's Inside Out 2.

He loves school, engineering, programming, Chinese, French, and loves playing with his younger siblings, no matter the age difference. We love you, Jaxon!

P.s. That evening we enjoyed(?) watching the planes dump water on a nearby fire on the mountain. It was actually a pretty bad fire, we were so grateful to be safe.

First Day of School 2025

2025-11-30T20:08:43.081-07:00

Oh, say it's not so! Talmage is officially a preschooler! No, it's been really good for him and for me. He goes every day for a couple hours, making new friends and learning English. He's loving it. I'm enjoying my time at the rec center trying to get a little healthier.

Then we have the elementary kids...

Ivy is a first grader and loving the Chinese immersion!

Violet is in 6th grade. Middle school is next year! (She's starting to read my old journals...)

Ginger is in 3rd grade. She's such a good, responsible student.

And of course, there's Jaxon. He has a personal goal of keeping a 4.0 the whole year. So far so good!

Travis photo bombing...

Knives

2025-11-30T20:08:43.005-07:00

The HHJJ in our ward spent the summer making knives! It was a great project and they were all so proud.

We're missing a couple boys in this photo, but they loved it!

Go Cougars!

2025-11-30T20:08:39.592-07:00

After we celebrated Ivy's birthday, we got ready for BYU's season opening football game!

It was definitely a warm evening!

We shared a couple Cougar Tails for the experience!

We won big time! What a fun evening!

Ivy Turns 6!

2025-11-30T20:08:35.524-07:00

Ivy dives turned 6! She's almost the absolute youngest in her grade but she can keep up with the best of them! Ivy is very creative, sweet, helpful and loves to be challenged. :)

I love it when she helps me out with dinner, and she's always eager to set the table without complaints. She is such a beautiful part of our family. We love you, Ivy!

End of Summer

2025-11-30T20:08:26.228-07:00

We spent the rest of the summer just chilling together.

Travis and Jaxon had a couple HHJJ campouts this summer that were a big hit for the ym.

Travis doing "pago", which is the kids look forward to every month.

More rec center fun, Talmage is so happy to be big enough to ride the indoor waterslides!

Of course, more Tuesdays with cousins.

Violet's birthday activity with Travis was camping, again. All the kids love camping with Travis.

Silliness before school starts!

Paradise Reservoir

2025-11-30T20:08:20.454-07:00

In July we scheduled in a week for the cabin. This time I thought we'd try something different from the norm and we went to Paradise reservoir for a day. It was so much fun, we'll definitely have to do it again!

What We've Been Up to this Summer

2025-07-21T00:22:00.002-06:00

Aside from the larger trips to Bear Lake and the cabin, we've found plenty of ways to fill in the summer. Settle in for the photo dump!

Travis and Ginger had her birthday activity. She wanted to go camping and chose to wait till the summer to camp instead of a winter campout.

Jaxon had a stake HHJJ campout for a week.

Here is a typical made up backyard game I'll call "Hide from the sprinkler"?

There's always a trip to the Bean Museum, or BYU Dinosaur Museum.

Ginger and Ivy powered through their summer workbooks in a month. Ivy has since wanted more, and more workbooks. She just finished her fourth and now wants "a break". Can't blame her!

We had our annual summer Ward BBQ with some fun games. We love our ward so much.

We go to the BYU Bookstore and just mess around. Here the kids are using a stage to dance to the "audience".

We had swim lessons, of course, and just normal pool days.

Ivy is my little nutritionist. She seems to be very aware of her body's needs. She's the kid who takes a couple of bites of a dessert and says, "Mmm..I think that's enough sugar for my body. I think I want a banana now." You go girl. She had been wanting to make these fruit skewers for a while and now that it's summer- perfect time.

She's also very innovative. I'll be honest, I forgot what she said this was.

We celebrated the 4th at Mamie and Papa's with food, fireworks, and cousins.

Britian (spelling is correct) is always like this on the 4th. Very typical.

That evening we had our youth fundraising activity- cleaning the BYU stadium after Stadium of Fire! We had a great turnout and most didn't have to stay too late! Only about 1:30am or so. Poor Travis and a few other fathers handled the hoses till 3:30am. We spent a long day at the pool to let him recover.

Jaxon and Violet took a bowling camp at BYU. Have I mentioned I just love living so close to campus?

Typical Thursday at Mamie's house with cousins. Here Ginger and Beckham are up to some magic tricks.

Violet finally let me take her to get her hair trimmed. She still thought it was too short.

Sleepovers with cousins at Mamie's house...

The annual backyard summer recital...

A fun Saturday evening at the splash pad.

Talbot Family Reunion 2025

2025-07-20T23:50:00.002-06:00

We had another wonderful Talbot family reunion at Bear Lake!

Travis had to work the first day, which was probably for the best because we found a little friend the first day at the beach...

Bridger and Mattie were in charge this year and they did a terrific job planning everything. Bridger was always taking kids out on his paddle board.

Ivy and Killarney were just two peas in a pod the whole trip.

Day two at the beach...Travis sat far from the water just in case our friend made a reappearance.

So it was up to me to help with sand castles.

It was such a fun weekend, and it was so nice to relax, eat some great food, listen to oldies, and catch up with everyone.